March 17, 2025 • 28 mins
In the first episode of Dropping Diamonds with AJ Andrews, AJ introduces herself and the podcast's mission to explore the world of softball. She shares her journey from playing multiple sports to becoming the first woman to win a Rawlings Gold Glove. AJ highlights the importance of giving 100%, the support from her family and coaches, and her goal to inspire and empower women in sports.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Dropping Diamonds with AJ Andrews is an iHeart women's sports
production in partnership with Athletes Unlimited Softball League and Deep
Blue Sports and Entertainment. What's up, everyone, Welcome to Dropping
Diamonds with AJ Andrews, where we dive headfirst into the
(00:22):
world of softball. I'm your fabulous host, Ada Andrews, pro
softball player, sports analysts, and the first woman to win
a Rawlings Gold Glove. So to say the least, I've
been shining ever since I can remember, whether it's gold,
whether it is diamonds. I am making sure that bring
(00:42):
the bling, the shine, the fab all the confidence onto
the field, and I hope we can continue to do
that on this podcast. So first things first, a little
bit about me and what this podcast is going to
be about. I am from the Tampa Clearwater, Florida area,
born and raised, and I played little league softball when
(01:04):
I was younger, on top of many many sports. So
I not only played softball, but I played soccer, I
played basketball, I ran track. I was the cheerleader with
the highest toe touch. Got to make sure that that
one is mentioned. But softball was truly the sport that
stole my heart. Because let's be honest, there's no other
sport where you can cheer at the top of your
(01:26):
lungs without having to do a herkey. Also being able
to go out and have fun with your teammates, your friends,
go field, come back in the dugout, and go out
and hit. There's just so many elements to the game
of softball that I just felt like I didn't get
anywhere else. And it was so much fun for me
to be able to go out every single day, create
the new cheers, and find new ways to win on
(01:49):
the ballfield with my teammates. Softball was truly the sport
that just really made me feel at home. And the
first thing that really took me in was making a
diving ca When I think about what made me fall
in love with softball, really it was absolutely making a
diving catch on wet, dewey grass. Because if you're from Florida,
you know how it gets in the early mornings. The
(02:11):
grass gets really wet and dewey. I made a diving
catch in Little League and I slid really, really, really
really far, and I thought to myself, at eleven years old,
oh my god, this is like a slip and slide Okay,
I can get behind this sport. This is gonna be
my new thing. If I can come out of here
and slip and slide around like I would in my backyard,
this is the game for me. And you know, as kids,
(02:32):
we just loved being able to go out and play
have water on us. It was the time of my
life to be able to hang out with my friends,
cheer as loud as I could, and go make diving
catches with a slip in side. Today a lot of
kids are nervous to make diving catches, but I started
off having a blast doing it. And so it's so
funny that the reason why I fell in love with
(02:52):
the game ultimately ended up being what helped me make
history as a first woman to win a go glove
and also help me kind of what I'm known for
in the game of softball, which is making amazing diving catches.
But I played at Oldsmar Little League, and from Oldsmar
Little League got into travel ball softball. My first travel
ball team was the Clearwater Bombers. And from the Clearwater
(03:15):
Bombers and went to Countryside High School in Clearwater, Florida,
and I had a coach there, Joe Desalvator, who really
took me under his wing and really saw so much
potential in me and was determined to help me reach
that potential. His daughter, Gianna de Salvator, was actually a
Soppa player at UCLA, and it was as if all
the stars were aligning because at that time, UCLA was
(03:37):
my favorite team because Natasha Wataly played at UCLA and
Natasha wat Lee was my favorite player. She was the
reason why I felt like I could excel at this
sport and how I could go beyond travel ball or
a little league to travel ball, to college, to playing
pro to being in the Olympics. She was the person
that set that dream in motion and so thinking my
favorite team's UCLA because Natasha Wally high school coach's daughter
(04:01):
goes to UCLA. I'm like, oh, I'm gonna listen to
everything you have to say, Coach Joe, because I want
to get to UCLA too, And we had private lessons
outside just high school ball. Like he truly, I don't
feel like I've thanked him enough, honestly, but he's truly
one of the biggest reasons why I'm here today. And
he guided me and told me that I should try
(04:22):
out for this other travel ball team, and it's called
Team Florida at that time, team at LA, And if
you weren't on the team, I'm pretty sure you called
it Team Flaw even though we had no flaws. Just
want to make that clear. But on that team was
really when I began to travel all across the country.
And travel ball is very different now than what it was. Then.
(04:45):
You had these select teams that were just very good. Right,
Team Florida one of the best teams in Florida. Then
you had the two to three best teams in Georgia.
I mean in California was stacked. So maybe like the
ten best teams in California, the five top of the
tier teams in Texas. Like you have these areas that
had just the best teams, and we would all go compete,
and so traveled all over the country. And I'll never
(05:06):
forget how it was that I got recruited, because one
of the coaches at LSU had told me the story
and she was saying how they began to watch me
at one of the Chava ball tournaments because I made
a diving catch as they were walking by. I just
think it's so amazing and fascinating to think about how
(05:26):
I made all these diving catches in my career and
in my life. And if I just let up that
one time, that one moment I didn't go after that ball,
that one moment I didn't lay out, my entire life
could be completely different. And I think that that is
just such a huge testament to just always going one
hundred percent. You never know who's watching, and you never
(05:49):
know when your moment, the moment is going to be
your moment, and who wants to help you make that
moment your moment. And so after making that diving catch,
I ultimately started getting recruited by LSU. The top schools
that I was really looking at at the time was LSU,
NC State, Auburn, and Memphis. I went on a visit
to Memphis. I had already went on a visit to Auburn,
(06:11):
and I had a visit schedule for INC State last
and LSU was coming up. And so I remember going
to campus for my LSU visit and falling in love immediately.
I mean, it's not hard to do at all. Going
to Baton Rouge. First of all, I went on my
visit when they were playing Alabama football, so come on, now,
(06:32):
if you know sports, then it was just already a
go to and it was already like, okay, they really
want me to come to this school. Having this game
as a game that I comes to for my visit,
the atmosphere was electric. It was so insane. I remember driving.
I mean, at this point, I'm sixteen years old and
we're driving from one place to another to go eat
and they had this huge hearse in front of the stadium,
(06:53):
decorated purple and gold with flames on it and it
said Death Valley. And at that time, I just thought this,
this was so crazy that all you have a huge
hearse At that time, I didn't understand sec culture. I
didn't understand football culture to the max. Right now to me,
like I would expect there to be a big hearse.
I would expect if we're playing Arkansas to the be
(07:15):
roasting a pig out in front, like these are the
things I now expect after four years plus at LSU.
But at the time, I'm thinking, oh, these fans are nuts.
These are the best fans I'm at the time of
my life here And then going the game and LSU
won the game, and it only continued the excitement, the energy,
and then you go to the softball field and it
looks like a hotel. It was beautiful, and everybody there
(07:39):
calls you boo or bay, and I just felt this
overwhelming feeling of, Oh, this is where I'm supposed to be.
And Coach Gerard, who was a coach at the time
who was recruiting me, she just was someone that I
really respected, really looked up to, and was really excited
to play under. And ultimately she ended up retiring before
I got to LSU, but that all led to coach Tarina,
(08:02):
Coach Batrina, who was ultimately my coach for the four
years I was there, and Istill the head coach today,
and she has taught me so many life lessons and
has taught me so many things that I really believe
have made me the athlete, but has also really helped
develop the talent on the field and the way that
I think and I view life today. One of the
(08:24):
big things you would always say was if we'd try
to make a diving catch, but we didn't really go
all out for it. So I do you think you
could have got that? I don't always bet, I mean
I think so saying yeah, I guess we will never know, no, now, huh,
since you didn't do it. And I'm one of those
people that I don't like feeling people are better than me,
Like I don't ever like feeling someone worked harder than
I did. Right, you can be a better athlete, fine,
(08:46):
but you will never have the title of working hard.
If we are on the same team, You're going to
have to do a hell of a lot to get
to a place where you have worked harder than I have.
And so the feeling of I guess we'll never know,
oh didn't sit right with me is like, you know what,
I'm actually never going to give you a reason to
doubt that I could have caught that ball from here
on out, like She's shaped so much of my mentality
(09:09):
and the way I show up on the field and
how it is that I go after every ball and
what is I'm going to do, and how I believe
that there's not a single ball that I can't catch.
And because I never wanted to give her a moment,
or anybody a moment for that matter of saying, I
guess we'll ever know if and I want you to
know I gave it my all and you're going to
say at the end of that play, oh, aged, that
was an amazing play. I can't believe you caught that,
(09:30):
or are you gonna say dang a ja, Yeah, that
was just too far out of your reach. But there's
never gonna be a moment where you're confused or weren't
sure if I could have caught that ball. And so,
Kochharina is someone that's truly inspired me throughout my career
and truly someone that's given me such perspective on not
just an athlete, but then you take that into life
and this whatever it is I'm trying to achieve outside
(09:50):
of sports. Do you think you could have done that? Yeah? Okay,
well did you do step one? Step two, step three? No? Okay, Well,
I guess we'll ever know, right, Like, I never want
to be in a place where I never know that
I didn't give my all, And that all stems from
coach Sharina. And then you have coach Dobson and coach Lindsay,
who are also part of the staff, who also individuals
(10:13):
that really just uplifted me. And Coach Dobson gave me
the mentality of you know, there's always someone coming for
your spot, and you just can never let them have
that opportunity. And I remember I played when I I
was so sick one time playing, but I just remember
I say, I cannot take a day off because I
don't want somebody to come and take my spot. Then
Coach Lindsay's just someone. She's just such a light, and
(10:35):
she now coaches at n C State, actually one of
the schools that I was recruited to, And so I
really give so much credit to the three of them
for the success that I had at LSU, but also
the success that I had afterwards, whether it is becoming
an All American or ultimately being the first woman to
win a Rawlings Gold. Love Baby, my little so Ding,
(11:00):
my little sparkle, sparkle, because you know, the hardware still
is gleaming, whether it's a diamond or it's gold, it
is gleaming. And winning the gold Glove was such an
empowering and special moment, not just for myself, but for
not just for softball either, but for women in sports
in general. Because when I think about women empowerment, it's
(11:21):
not about making women stronger. It's about challenging the way
the world perceives that strength. I believe me winning that
goal glove challenged the way people viewed softball and viewed
the Why is it this the first time that a
woman's winning a goal glove. Women have been making amazing
catches like MLB players since the beginning of time. Right,
(11:43):
this is now going to be something that we're going
to continue to do. Right. I may be the first,
but I know not going to be the last. And
now they're giving gold gloves to collegiate athletes for the
amazing accomplishments that they have. I believe when one door
is open from a woman that's broken a glass ceiling
or broken down a barrier, it truly leads to more
doors waiting to be opened by other women in sports
(12:04):
and waiting for more first waiting for more berrier breaking moments,
waiting for more glass ceilings to be completely shattered. Let's
take a quick break to hear word from our sponsor.
So the year I won a gold Glove, which was
(12:25):
twenty sixteen, I broke my hand earlier that season, and
I wasn't feeling like myself like I was nervous to
make diving catches. I am not nervous to make any
diving catch ever, ever, But because my hand was broken.
I was scared of the paint that I would endure
as soon as I landed. And I remember this true
Utubal say Pride. I was on the Akron Racers and
(12:48):
we're playing them at home. Were there at Orlando at
the time, And it was Chelsea Goodacre that hit the ball.
She's a lefty power hitter. She played at Arizona. It
was a catcher and she hits the ball, breaks itmpletely,
ropes it down the right field line. And I was
playing right field at the time, and I run and
I just take off. I'm not even thinking at this point.
(13:09):
I'm laser focus on this ball and how I'm gonna
make this catch. I'm running, ready, running, and I go
all the way back and I reach all the way
out full extension, and I make this amazing diving catch
back at the wall. Literally all they slid all the
way to the wall. And I believe that that is
the catch that cemented me winning the goal Glove. It's
such a testament to just keep going. Because that season
(13:33):
I broke my hand. I could say, Okay, no, that's it.
I'm gonna call it like my hand is broken, y'all.
I'm in pain, agonizing pain every time I try to
grip a bat, every time I try to put my
glove on my hand. But I wanted to keep going.
I'm not saying, if you are completely injured, please take
that time off. But for me, I knew that I
could play through it. I wanted to continue to go,
(13:56):
and I didn't want to stop my season. That's just
the power of not giving up. I love that I
kept pushing through that and ultimately was able to be
a first and make history. And from that history, I
really developed the mindset of be too determined to be
defeated and too focused to be doubtful. Like I was
(14:18):
too determined to ever allow a failure or to ever
allow a moment of things that are not going my
way to defeat me, of ever letting what someone had
to say about me defeat me, of ever allowing the
thoughts I was having to stop me too determined towards
(14:39):
my goals, too determined to be successful, too determined to
be the best to ever be doubtful. And I didn't
know I was going to win the goal Glove that year.
I didn't know that was a thing. They didn't say
that they were going to give the goal glove out
until quite literally, I think two weeks before seasons was
about to end, and so I was out there playing
the way I was playing and making the diving catches
because that's just who I am, my character. That's because
(15:01):
I want to win. I want to be the best.
I want every I will turn every outfield into a
no fly zone. That was always my goal. After being
too determined to be defeated, being too focused to be doubtful, Like,
you're just so focused and so headstrong towards your goals,
you don't have time to entertain doubt. Because doubt will
(15:21):
creep in. It always does. But when you are too
focused to be doubtful, you quite literally don't have time
to entertain it. It comes in your mind. He said, oh, hey,
you're not welcome here. You gotta go. I have other
things to tend to, and you allow doubt to flow
out the same way that it flew in. And for me,
being too determined to be defeated and she focused to
be doubtful has not just allowed me to play professional softball,
(15:43):
but also my broadcasting career and being able to really
dive into whether I was talking softball and SEC network
or hosting the show I host on MLB Network called Playball,
or hosting Business of Sports on Reach TV. Always so
determined to reach my goals that I was going to
(16:05):
put in that work. There wasn't anyone that was going
to outwork me. There was never going to be a
moment where I said, well, I guess we'll never know, right.
I was never going to leave that to interpretation. I
was always going to put my best foot, the hardest
work forward and thinking about the coaches that I had
in the past, just Coach Sarina right, and never giving
(16:27):
myself a moment to ever wonder if I'll ever know
Coach Dobson, always showing up, being present, doing what I
need to do, so that there's just quite literally no
one that can take my spot. Nobody is me. That's
just superpower. By the way, There's nobody that is you,
And no matter what it is that people try to
(16:48):
do or try to become, no one can replicate you
and yourself. And I think it's so important when you
have goals or you have people that you're inspired by,
to make sure that they are guides and they're not
your goals, like I want to become x Yd though
this person is going to be my guide to getting
(17:10):
to where I want to be. They're not my goal.
Because if you make somebody your goal, or make one
thing your goal, then you put a cap on what
you actually could achieve, and what you could have achieved
was maybe higher than that. Maybe that person set the
pavement so that you can go even further. But if
you said, Okay, this is what I want to hit,
this is what I'm trying to get to, you are
putting a complete cap on your potential and you are
(17:31):
stunting your growth without even realizing it. There's so much
more you could achieve. So that is a guide to
where I want to get to. Now, how am I
going to make it my own? Because nobody can be me?
And I think all the time about everybody brings their
own special uniqueness to it, and so that's so important
also to remember when you're going after your goals, nobody
is you do what you ought to do to get
to where you're going, because that's a matter of what's
(17:52):
come before you was come past. All that matters is
a present and then also being excited and being able
to allow yourself to grace the way. Coach Lindsay taught me.
So I've really been able to maneuver into my career,
whether it's on the softball field or outside, because we
can do both. Women are powerful, We can do a
(18:13):
lot of things, and I want to make sure I
can achieve all of the things that I want to achieve,
and I've always had a really supportive family and to
make sure I can do so. And you got to
think it was those long, long drives. I mean, now
we have all this technology, but I'm not going to
age myself. But I was around when map quest was
(18:33):
a thing. Okay, So I used to love waking up
in the morning, printing out the directions off a map
Quest and me my mom's passenger Princess as we drive
to the field or whichever field it was, all over
in the state of Florida and eventually all over the country.
My mom has always come to the field with myself
(18:54):
also my younger sisters, to make sure that anytime we
need anybody to shag balls for us, she was there
to front toss to us. She was there. She was
always our biggest supporter and always somebody that was going
to make sure She's going to help us reach our
goals and my dad is somebody that that's my go
to when it comes to after games. My dad is
(19:15):
always someone to give me a motivational talk, always someone
to get me back on my feet whenever I feel
like I fall in. And I really feel that my
dad is someone who has kept me sane in some
of the moments. I'm very hard on myself, very hard
on myself as an athlete, as a broadcaster, whatever it is,
(19:36):
I'm my own worst critic, and I would always call
my dad and he was always somebody that was able
to level me out and remind me of who I am.
I think there's often times when we're athletes and or
things that we're doing, and we can forget who we are,
why we deserve what we deserve, and that we deserve
(19:59):
to be in this space no matter what we're feeling.
Our feelings sometimes are not real and to allow those
to ebb and flow, come in as they came, as
they come in, and leave just the same way that
they came. And so my dad has always been that
person to always remind me of that. It keep me
uplifted and there's just really nothing that I believe I
couldn't do, and it couldn't achieve and without the support
(20:20):
of my family and those coaches, they really were a
large part of the foundation that's allowed me to do so.
All Right, we have more diamonds to drop after these messages,
after I won the go Glub, I feel like that
(20:42):
was really when my mission came to continue to inspire women,
especially softball players, that there is just so much more
for us. We deserve so much more, and we're going
to go out and we're going to get it. We
are going to be in a position where we can
be professional softball players and that's it. You don't have
to have two three jobs and be play and we
(21:03):
can go out and get the recognition we deserve, go
out and get the TV time that we deserve, and
all those things are happening. And it's so important because
when we feel that confidence in ourselves and in our sport,
it only continues to grow the sport and to grow
the individuals and the eyes and creates more new fans.
Confidence in oneself transcends to confidence on the field, which
(21:26):
transcends to confidence in every facet of life. And that's
really why I wanted to create this podcast. It was
really to make sure that softball gets the love that
we deserve and to make sure that everybody on and
off the field gets to shine bright like a diamond.
And sometimes the storytelling for women's sports can be lacking,
(21:49):
and I want to be the space where if you
want to know anything about a softball player, if you
want to learn how someone has done something, the mindset
someone hads to get to, they're getting to how they
overcame the things they overcame, because softball is so much
more than just your skill set on the field. As
we know as athletes, sometimes it's a lot more mental
(22:10):
than it is physical that gets people from being just
a softball player to being All American, from being collegiate
to being professional, being professional to being Olympic. So there's
all these different elements and I want to be able
to dive headfirst into the conversations with these amazing athletes
and to find out what it is that made them
(22:31):
who they are today and how it is that they're
going to continue to grow with their skill set, but
also as we continue to grow softball as a whole.
This is the landing spot for all things softball. Baby,
We're going to be talking college, professional, Olympic, we're gonna
be talking even at the youth level. I want to
make sure any questions you have when it comes to softball,
(22:52):
we are here and we are answering. We're gonna make
sure you know how to field a groundball properly with
how the best do it. Also going to know how
it is to your approach at the plate. Also know
how it is you maybe to read the ball in
the outfield, how to know what it is, how to
maybe coach. What these coaches are doing to create these
amazing programs, What the use should be doing in order
to get them stand out to be recruited by the
(23:14):
top programs. What it's like to overcome adversity, what it's
like to come get through a drought, what it's like
to get through our time at the plate. Whether it
is what pitch is the best pitch to pitch, or
what pitches the best pitch to hit, it's all gonna
be here, the ins and outs, whether it's a screwball
or current ball, We're gonna learn it all here on
(23:36):
dropping diamonds, will also dropping some diamonds on the diamond
And you guys have all heard the term dropping gems.
Right where we're dropping amazing wisdom and great conversation where
you can hear some things that can really help you
in life and beyond. That's where we're doing here Bay.
We're dropping diamonds and we're making sure we go through
(23:57):
that with our affirmations because we have the lead it off.
You have to believe in yourself in order to achieve
the things you want to achieve. Confidence is like a muscle.
It has to be worked out every single day. You
have to work on that. We're gonna make sure that
we are working out our confidence muscle and that is
with our affirmations. Affirmations are so important to me because
(24:17):
it truly starts off the day and how are you
gonna go about that day and who you are going
to show up as that day? And I want every
time you listen to Dropping Diamonds, you're able to show
up as your best self. And if you didn't feel
like you were before you turned on this podcast, hopefully
you leave with some inspiration and some motivation, and I
(24:38):
want you to be able to come through listen to
the diamonds that are dropped to not only help you
become the best softball players or baseball players, because this
can transcend just softball or athletes as a whole, gain
a new perspective, gain a new mindset, and also feel
like you came away with something that you can really
utilize in your own life. We're here, softball, no more
(25:00):
waiting for someone to give permission, for you to excel,
for you to love yourself, for you to be the
best as a woman in sport. The time is now.
It is not a moment, but it is a movement.
Softball is on the train and we're gonna keep going
fast and all the way. We're really hit a home run.
(25:23):
Let's do it. We're gonna hit a home run, or
you know what I mean. You could slap a home
run too, because you know we do that. Slap a
home run, punch it through the whole butt, and run
it out. All the ways we're gonna find in order
to make sure softball continues to get bigger and better.
Softball is one of the most exciting sports to watch,
one of the most exciting sports to play. We're gonna
(25:45):
drop some diamonds, just like we drop the bombs on
the field, and we're gonna shine like diamonds. Get excited
for the different conversations you're gonna learn so much, not
only how to be a great softball player, how to
come through the adversity, but ultimately how to shine bright
like a diamond. Pressure makes diamonds. It also busts pipes.
(26:05):
But on this podcast, we're only gonna be making diamonds.
You'll be able to hear from some of the best
of the best, whether it's Natasha Wantley touring the Dallas
Maya Brady, Jenny Finch, kim Ing, Aliyah Andrews, and make
sure that you not only can come up on a
soft off field and drop bombs, but also drop some diamonds.
(26:27):
Get excited because we're gonna be setting the tone. I
will begin every episode with affirmation and incorporate the affirmation
throughout the podcast. Here's some the affirmations that really have
gotten my guests throughout their days, throughout their times on
the field and off, and how it is that we
can continue to turn every opportunity into a shining bright
(26:48):
like a diamond. One. Thank you so much for listening
to this first episode of Dropping Diamonds with Aja Andrews.
I hope you receive some diamonds you can apply to
your life. Remember be too determined to be defeated and
too focused to be doubtful. Always be unabashedly aware of
your fly and make sure that you know that you
(27:10):
can always shine right like a diamond. I will meet
you here next week at the Diamond Bye for now.
Dropping Diamonds with Aj Andrews is an iHeart women's sports
production in partnership with Athletes Unlimited Softball League and Deep
(27:32):
Blue Sports and Entertainment. I'm your host, AJ Andrews. Our
executive producer is Jesse Katz. Tari Harrison is our supervising producer,
and this episode was mixed and mastered by Mary Doo.
Listen to Dropping Diamonds with AJ Andrews on the iHeartRadio app,
Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Dropping Diamonds with AJ Andrews is an iHeart women's sports
production in partnership with Athletes Unlimited Softball League and Deep
Blue Sports and Entertainment. What's up, everyone, Welcome to Dropping
Diamonds with AJ Andrews, where we dive headfirst into the
(00:22):
world of softball. I'm your fabulous host, Ada Andrews, pro
softball player, sports analysts, and the first woman to win
a Rawlings Gold Glove. So to say the least, I've
been shining ever since I can remember, whether it's gold,
whether it is diamonds. I am making sure that bring
(00:42):
the bling, the shine, the fab all the confidence onto
the field, and I hope we can continue to do
that on this podcast. So first things first, a little
bit about me and what this podcast is going to
be about. I am from the Tampa Clearwater, Florida area,
born and raised, and I played little league softball when
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I was younger, on top of many many sports. So
I not only played softball, but I played soccer, I
played basketball, I ran track. I was the cheerleader with
the highest toe touch. Got to make sure that that
one is mentioned. But softball was truly the sport that
stole my heart. Because let's be honest, there's no other
sport where you can cheer at the top of your
(01:26):
lungs without having to do a herkey. Also being able
to go out and have fun with your teammates, your friends,
go field, come back in the dugout, and go out
and hit. There's just so many elements to the game
of softball that I just felt like I didn't get
anywhere else. And it was so much fun for me
to be able to go out every single day, create
the new cheers, and find new ways to win on
(01:49):
the ballfield with my teammates. Softball was truly the sport
that just really made me feel at home. And the
first thing that really took me in was making a
diving ca When I think about what made me fall
in love with softball, really it was absolutely making a
diving catch on wet, dewey grass. Because if you're from Florida,
you know how it gets in the early mornings. The
(02:11):
grass gets really wet and dewey. I made a diving
catch in Little League and I slid really, really, really
really far, and I thought to myself, at eleven years old,
oh my god, this is like a slip and slide Okay,
I can get behind this sport. This is gonna be
my new thing. If I can come out of here
and slip and slide around like I would in my backyard,
this is the game for me. And you know, as kids,
(02:32):
we just loved being able to go out and play
have water on us. It was the time of my
life to be able to hang out with my friends,
cheer as loud as I could, and go make diving
catches with a slip in side. Today a lot of
kids are nervous to make diving catches, but I started
off having a blast doing it. And so it's so
funny that the reason why I fell in love with
(02:52):
the game ultimately ended up being what helped me make
history as a first woman to win a go glove
and also help me kind of what I'm known for
in the game of softball, which is making amazing diving catches.
But I played at Oldsmar Little League, and from Oldsmar
Little League got into travel ball softball. My first travel
ball team was the Clearwater Bombers. And from the Clearwater
(03:15):
Bombers and went to Countryside High School in Clearwater, Florida,
and I had a coach there, Joe Desalvator, who really
took me under his wing and really saw so much
potential in me and was determined to help me reach
that potential. His daughter, Gianna de Salvator, was actually a
Soppa player at UCLA, and it was as if all
the stars were aligning because at that time, UCLA was
(03:37):
my favorite team because Natasha Wataly played at UCLA and
Natasha wat Lee was my favorite player. She was the
reason why I felt like I could excel at this
sport and how I could go beyond travel ball or
a little league to travel ball, to college, to playing
pro to being in the Olympics. She was the person
that set that dream in motion and so thinking my
favorite team's UCLA because Natasha Wally high school coach's daughter
(04:01):
goes to UCLA. I'm like, oh, I'm gonna listen to
everything you have to say, Coach Joe, because I want
to get to UCLA too, And we had private lessons
outside just high school ball. Like he truly, I don't
feel like I've thanked him enough, honestly, but he's truly
one of the biggest reasons why I'm here today. And
he guided me and told me that I should try
(04:22):
out for this other travel ball team, and it's called
Team Florida at that time, team at LA, And if
you weren't on the team, I'm pretty sure you called
it Team Flaw even though we had no flaws. Just
want to make that clear. But on that team was
really when I began to travel all across the country.
And travel ball is very different now than what it was. Then.
(04:45):
You had these select teams that were just very good. Right,
Team Florida one of the best teams in Florida. Then
you had the two to three best teams in Georgia.
I mean in California was stacked. So maybe like the
ten best teams in California, the five top of the
tier teams in Texas. Like you have these areas that
had just the best teams, and we would all go compete,
and so traveled all over the country. And I'll never
(05:06):
forget how it was that I got recruited, because one
of the coaches at LSU had told me the story
and she was saying how they began to watch me
at one of the Chava ball tournaments because I made
a diving catch as they were walking by. I just
think it's so amazing and fascinating to think about how
(05:26):
I made all these diving catches in my career and
in my life. And if I just let up that
one time, that one moment I didn't go after that ball,
that one moment I didn't lay out, my entire life
could be completely different. And I think that that is
just such a huge testament to just always going one
hundred percent. You never know who's watching, and you never
(05:49):
know when your moment, the moment is going to be
your moment, and who wants to help you make that
moment your moment. And so after making that diving catch,
I ultimately started getting recruited by LSU. The top schools
that I was really looking at at the time was LSU,
NC State, Auburn, and Memphis. I went on a visit
to Memphis. I had already went on a visit to Auburn,
(06:11):
and I had a visit schedule for INC State last
and LSU was coming up. And so I remember going
to campus for my LSU visit and falling in love immediately.
I mean, it's not hard to do at all. Going
to Baton Rouge. First of all, I went on my
visit when they were playing Alabama football, so come on, now,
(06:32):
if you know sports, then it was just already a
go to and it was already like, okay, they really
want me to come to this school. Having this game
as a game that I comes to for my visit,
the atmosphere was electric. It was so insane. I remember driving.
I mean, at this point, I'm sixteen years old and
we're driving from one place to another to go eat
and they had this huge hearse in front of the stadium,
(06:53):
decorated purple and gold with flames on it and it
said Death Valley. And at that time, I just thought this,
this was so crazy that all you have a huge
hearse At that time, I didn't understand sec culture. I
didn't understand football culture to the max. Right now to me,
like I would expect there to be a big hearse.
I would expect if we're playing Arkansas to the be
(07:15):
roasting a pig out in front, like these are the
things I now expect after four years plus at LSU.
But at the time, I'm thinking, oh, these fans are nuts.
These are the best fans I'm at the time of
my life here And then going the game and LSU
won the game, and it only continued the excitement, the energy,
and then you go to the softball field and it
looks like a hotel. It was beautiful, and everybody there
(07:39):
calls you boo or bay, and I just felt this
overwhelming feeling of, Oh, this is where I'm supposed to be.
And Coach Gerard, who was a coach at the time
who was recruiting me, she just was someone that I
really respected, really looked up to, and was really excited
to play under. And ultimately she ended up retiring before
I got to LSU, but that all led to coach Tarina,
(08:02):
Coach Batrina, who was ultimately my coach for the four
years I was there, and Istill the head coach today,
and she has taught me so many life lessons and
has taught me so many things that I really believe
have made me the athlete, but has also really helped
develop the talent on the field and the way that
I think and I view life today. One of the
(08:24):
big things you would always say was if we'd try
to make a diving catch, but we didn't really go
all out for it. So I do you think you
could have got that? I don't always bet, I mean
I think so saying yeah, I guess we will never know, no, now, huh,
since you didn't do it. And I'm one of those
people that I don't like feeling people are better than me,
Like I don't ever like feeling someone worked harder than
I did. Right, you can be a better athlete, fine,
(08:46):
but you will never have the title of working hard.
If we are on the same team, You're going to
have to do a hell of a lot to get
to a place where you have worked harder than I have.
And so the feeling of I guess we'll never know,
oh didn't sit right with me is like, you know what,
I'm actually never going to give you a reason to
doubt that I could have caught that ball from here
on out, like She's shaped so much of my mentality
(09:09):
and the way I show up on the field and
how it is that I go after every ball and
what is I'm going to do, and how I believe
that there's not a single ball that I can't catch.
And because I never wanted to give her a moment,
or anybody a moment for that matter of saying, I
guess we'll ever know if and I want you to
know I gave it my all and you're going to
say at the end of that play, oh, aged, that
was an amazing play. I can't believe you caught that,
(09:30):
or are you gonna say dang a ja, Yeah, that
was just too far out of your reach. But there's
never gonna be a moment where you're confused or weren't
sure if I could have caught that ball. And so,
Kochharina is someone that's truly inspired me throughout my career
and truly someone that's given me such perspective on not
just an athlete, but then you take that into life
and this whatever it is I'm trying to achieve outside
(09:50):
of sports. Do you think you could have done that? Yeah? Okay,
well did you do step one? Step two, step three? No? Okay, Well,
I guess we'll ever know, right, Like, I never want
to be in a place where I never know that
I didn't give my all, And that all stems from
coach Sharina. And then you have coach Dobson and coach Lindsay,
who are also part of the staff, who also individuals
(10:13):
that really just uplifted me. And Coach Dobson gave me
the mentality of you know, there's always someone coming for
your spot, and you just can never let them have
that opportunity. And I remember I played when I I
was so sick one time playing, but I just remember
I say, I cannot take a day off because I
don't want somebody to come and take my spot. Then
Coach Lindsay's just someone. She's just such a light, and
(10:35):
she now coaches at n C State, actually one of
the schools that I was recruited to, And so I
really give so much credit to the three of them
for the success that I had at LSU, but also
the success that I had afterwards, whether it is becoming
an All American or ultimately being the first woman to
win a Rawlings Gold. Love Baby, my little so Ding,
(11:00):
my little sparkle, sparkle, because you know, the hardware still
is gleaming, whether it's a diamond or it's gold, it
is gleaming. And winning the gold Glove was such an
empowering and special moment, not just for myself, but for
not just for softball either, but for women in sports
in general. Because when I think about women empowerment, it's
(11:21):
not about making women stronger. It's about challenging the way
the world perceives that strength. I believe me winning that
goal glove challenged the way people viewed softball and viewed
the Why is it this the first time that a
woman's winning a goal glove. Women have been making amazing
catches like MLB players since the beginning of time. Right,
(11:43):
this is now going to be something that we're going
to continue to do. Right. I may be the first,
but I know not going to be the last. And
now they're giving gold gloves to collegiate athletes for the
amazing accomplishments that they have. I believe when one door
is open from a woman that's broken a glass ceiling
or broken down a barrier, it truly leads to more
doors waiting to be opened by other women in sports
(12:04):
and waiting for more first waiting for more berrier breaking moments,
waiting for more glass ceilings to be completely shattered. Let's
take a quick break to hear word from our sponsor.
So the year I won a gold Glove, which was
(12:25):
twenty sixteen, I broke my hand earlier that season, and
I wasn't feeling like myself like I was nervous to
make diving catches. I am not nervous to make any
diving catch ever, ever, But because my hand was broken.
I was scared of the paint that I would endure
as soon as I landed. And I remember this true
Utubal say Pride. I was on the Akron Racers and
(12:48):
we're playing them at home. Were there at Orlando at
the time, And it was Chelsea Goodacre that hit the ball.
She's a lefty power hitter. She played at Arizona. It
was a catcher and she hits the ball, breaks itmpletely,
ropes it down the right field line. And I was
playing right field at the time, and I run and
I just take off. I'm not even thinking at this point.
(13:09):
I'm laser focus on this ball and how I'm gonna
make this catch. I'm running, ready, running, and I go
all the way back and I reach all the way
out full extension, and I make this amazing diving catch
back at the wall. Literally all they slid all the
way to the wall. And I believe that that is
the catch that cemented me winning the goal Glove. It's
such a testament to just keep going. Because that season
(13:33):
I broke my hand. I could say, Okay, no, that's it.
I'm gonna call it like my hand is broken, y'all.
I'm in pain, agonizing pain every time I try to
grip a bat, every time I try to put my
glove on my hand. But I wanted to keep going.
I'm not saying, if you are completely injured, please take
that time off. But for me, I knew that I
could play through it. I wanted to continue to go,
(13:56):
and I didn't want to stop my season. That's just
the power of not giving up. I love that I
kept pushing through that and ultimately was able to be
a first and make history. And from that history, I
really developed the mindset of be too determined to be
defeated and too focused to be doubtful. Like I was
(14:18):
too determined to ever allow a failure or to ever
allow a moment of things that are not going my
way to defeat me, of ever letting what someone had
to say about me defeat me, of ever allowing the
thoughts I was having to stop me too determined towards
(14:39):
my goals, too determined to be successful, too determined to
be the best to ever be doubtful. And I didn't
know I was going to win the goal Glove that year.
I didn't know that was a thing. They didn't say
that they were going to give the goal glove out
until quite literally, I think two weeks before seasons was
about to end, and so I was out there playing
the way I was playing and making the diving catches
because that's just who I am, my character. That's because
(15:01):
I want to win. I want to be the best.
I want every I will turn every outfield into a
no fly zone. That was always my goal. After being
too determined to be defeated, being too focused to be doubtful, Like,
you're just so focused and so headstrong towards your goals,
you don't have time to entertain doubt. Because doubt will
(15:21):
creep in. It always does. But when you are too
focused to be doubtful, you quite literally don't have time
to entertain it. It comes in your mind. He said, oh, hey,
you're not welcome here. You gotta go. I have other
things to tend to, and you allow doubt to flow
out the same way that it flew in. And for me,
being too determined to be defeated and she focused to
be doubtful has not just allowed me to play professional softball,
(15:43):
but also my broadcasting career and being able to really
dive into whether I was talking softball and SEC network
or hosting the show I host on MLB Network called Playball,
or hosting Business of Sports on Reach TV. Always so
determined to reach my goals that I was going to
(16:05):
put in that work. There wasn't anyone that was going
to outwork me. There was never going to be a
moment where I said, well, I guess we'll never know, right.
I was never going to leave that to interpretation. I
was always going to put my best foot, the hardest
work forward and thinking about the coaches that I had
in the past, just Coach Sarina right, and never giving
(16:27):
myself a moment to ever wonder if I'll ever know
Coach Dobson, always showing up, being present, doing what I
need to do, so that there's just quite literally no
one that can take my spot. Nobody is me. That's
just superpower. By the way, There's nobody that is you,
And no matter what it is that people try to
(16:48):
do or try to become, no one can replicate you
and yourself. And I think it's so important when you
have goals or you have people that you're inspired by,
to make sure that they are guides and they're not
your goals, like I want to become x Yd though
this person is going to be my guide to getting
(17:10):
to where I want to be. They're not my goal.
Because if you make somebody your goal, or make one
thing your goal, then you put a cap on what
you actually could achieve, and what you could have achieved
was maybe higher than that. Maybe that person set the
pavement so that you can go even further. But if
you said, Okay, this is what I want to hit,
this is what I'm trying to get to, you are
putting a complete cap on your potential and you are
(17:31):
stunting your growth without even realizing it. There's so much
more you could achieve. So that is a guide to
where I want to get to. Now, how am I
going to make it my own? Because nobody can be me?
And I think all the time about everybody brings their
own special uniqueness to it, and so that's so important
also to remember when you're going after your goals, nobody
is you do what you ought to do to get
to where you're going, because that's a matter of what's
(17:52):
come before you was come past. All that matters is
a present and then also being excited and being able
to allow yourself to grace the way. Coach Lindsay taught me.
So I've really been able to maneuver into my career,
whether it's on the softball field or outside, because we
can do both. Women are powerful, We can do a
(18:13):
lot of things, and I want to make sure I
can achieve all of the things that I want to achieve,
and I've always had a really supportive family and to
make sure I can do so. And you got to
think it was those long, long drives. I mean, now
we have all this technology, but I'm not going to
age myself. But I was around when map quest was
(18:33):
a thing. Okay, So I used to love waking up
in the morning, printing out the directions off a map
Quest and me my mom's passenger Princess as we drive
to the field or whichever field it was, all over
in the state of Florida and eventually all over the country.
My mom has always come to the field with myself
(18:54):
also my younger sisters, to make sure that anytime we
need anybody to shag balls for us, she was there
to front toss to us. She was there. She was
always our biggest supporter and always somebody that was going
to make sure She's going to help us reach our
goals and my dad is somebody that that's my go
to when it comes to after games. My dad is
(19:15):
always someone to give me a motivational talk, always someone
to get me back on my feet whenever I feel
like I fall in. And I really feel that my
dad is someone who has kept me sane in some
of the moments. I'm very hard on myself, very hard
on myself as an athlete, as a broadcaster, whatever it is,
(19:36):
I'm my own worst critic, and I would always call
my dad and he was always somebody that was able
to level me out and remind me of who I am.
I think there's often times when we're athletes and or
things that we're doing, and we can forget who we are,
why we deserve what we deserve, and that we deserve
(19:59):
to be in this space no matter what we're feeling.
Our feelings sometimes are not real and to allow those
to ebb and flow, come in as they came, as
they come in, and leave just the same way that
they came. And so my dad has always been that
person to always remind me of that. It keep me
uplifted and there's just really nothing that I believe I
couldn't do, and it couldn't achieve and without the support
(20:20):
of my family and those coaches, they really were a
large part of the foundation that's allowed me to do so.
All Right, we have more diamonds to drop after these messages,
after I won the go Glub, I feel like that
(20:42):
was really when my mission came to continue to inspire women,
especially softball players, that there is just so much more
for us. We deserve so much more, and we're going
to go out and we're going to get it. We
are going to be in a position where we can
be professional softball players and that's it. You don't have
to have two three jobs and be play and we
(21:03):
can go out and get the recognition we deserve, go
out and get the TV time that we deserve, and
all those things are happening. And it's so important because
when we feel that confidence in ourselves and in our sport,
it only continues to grow the sport and to grow
the individuals and the eyes and creates more new fans.
Confidence in oneself transcends to confidence on the field, which
(21:26):
transcends to confidence in every facet of life. And that's
really why I wanted to create this podcast. It was
really to make sure that softball gets the love that
we deserve and to make sure that everybody on and
off the field gets to shine bright like a diamond.
And sometimes the storytelling for women's sports can be lacking,
(21:49):
and I want to be the space where if you
want to know anything about a softball player, if you
want to learn how someone has done something, the mindset
someone hads to get to, they're getting to how they
overcame the things they overcame, because softball is so much
more than just your skill set on the field. As
we know as athletes, sometimes it's a lot more mental
(22:10):
than it is physical that gets people from being just
a softball player to being All American, from being collegiate
to being professional, being professional to being Olympic. So there's
all these different elements and I want to be able
to dive headfirst into the conversations with these amazing athletes
and to find out what it is that made them
(22:31):
who they are today and how it is that they're
going to continue to grow with their skill set, but
also as we continue to grow softball as a whole.
This is the landing spot for all things softball. Baby,
We're going to be talking college, professional, Olympic, we're gonna
be talking even at the youth level. I want to
make sure any questions you have when it comes to softball,
(22:52):
we are here and we are answering. We're gonna make
sure you know how to field a groundball properly with
how the best do it. Also going to know how
it is to your approach at the plate. Also know
how it is you maybe to read the ball in
the outfield, how to know what it is, how to
maybe coach. What these coaches are doing to create these
amazing programs, What the use should be doing in order
to get them stand out to be recruited by the
(23:14):
top programs. What it's like to overcome adversity, what it's
like to come get through a drought, what it's like
to get through our time at the plate. Whether it
is what pitch is the best pitch to pitch, or
what pitches the best pitch to hit, it's all gonna
be here, the ins and outs, whether it's a screwball
or current ball, We're gonna learn it all here on
(23:36):
dropping diamonds, will also dropping some diamonds on the diamond
And you guys have all heard the term dropping gems.
Right where we're dropping amazing wisdom and great conversation where
you can hear some things that can really help you
in life and beyond. That's where we're doing here Bay.
We're dropping diamonds and we're making sure we go through
(23:57):
that with our affirmations because we have the lead it off.
You have to believe in yourself in order to achieve
the things you want to achieve. Confidence is like a muscle.
It has to be worked out every single day. You
have to work on that. We're gonna make sure that
we are working out our confidence muscle and that is
with our affirmations. Affirmations are so important to me because
(24:17):
it truly starts off the day and how are you
gonna go about that day and who you are going
to show up as that day? And I want every
time you listen to Dropping Diamonds, you're able to show
up as your best self. And if you didn't feel
like you were before you turned on this podcast, hopefully
you leave with some inspiration and some motivation, and I
(24:38):
want you to be able to come through listen to
the diamonds that are dropped to not only help you
become the best softball players or baseball players, because this
can transcend just softball or athletes as a whole, gain
a new perspective, gain a new mindset, and also feel
like you came away with something that you can really
utilize in your own life. We're here, softball, no more
(25:00):
waiting for someone to give permission, for you to excel,
for you to love yourself, for you to be the
best as a woman in sport. The time is now.
It is not a moment, but it is a movement.
Softball is on the train and we're gonna keep going
fast and all the way. We're really hit a home run.
(25:23):
Let's do it. We're gonna hit a home run, or
you know what I mean. You could slap a home
run too, because you know we do that. Slap a
home run, punch it through the whole butt, and run
it out. All the ways we're gonna find in order
to make sure softball continues to get bigger and better.
Softball is one of the most exciting sports to watch,
one of the most exciting sports to play. We're gonna
(25:45):
drop some diamonds, just like we drop the bombs on
the field, and we're gonna shine like diamonds. Get excited
for the different conversations you're gonna learn so much, not
only how to be a great softball player, how to
come through the adversity, but ultimately how to shine bright
like a diamond. Pressure makes diamonds. It also busts pipes.
(26:05):
But on this podcast, we're only gonna be making diamonds.
You'll be able to hear from some of the best
of the best, whether it's Natasha Wantley touring the Dallas
Maya Brady, Jenny Finch, kim Ing, Aliyah Andrews, and make
sure that you not only can come up on a
soft off field and drop bombs, but also drop some diamonds.
(26:27):
Get excited because we're gonna be setting the tone. I
will begin every episode with affirmation and incorporate the affirmation
throughout the podcast. Here's some the affirmations that really have
gotten my guests throughout their days, throughout their times on
the field and off, and how it is that we
can continue to turn every opportunity into a shining bright
(26:48):
like a diamond. One. Thank you so much for listening
to this first episode of Dropping Diamonds with Aja Andrews.
I hope you receive some diamonds you can apply to
your life. Remember be too determined to be defeated and
too focused to be doubtful. Always be unabashedly aware of
your fly and make sure that you know that you
(27:10):
can always shine right like a diamond. I will meet
you here next week at the Diamond Bye for now.
Dropping Diamonds with Aj Andrews is an iHeart women's sports
production in partnership with Athletes Unlimited Softball League and Deep
(27:32):
Blue Sports and Entertainment. I'm your host, AJ Andrews. Our
executive producer is Jesse Katz. Tari Harrison is our supervising producer,
and this episode was mixed and mastered by Mary Doo.
Listen to Dropping Diamonds with AJ Andrews on the iHeartRadio app,
Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!